Brand USA Talks Travel

Hear about the unique positioning of Oulu, Finland, a city that says: "There's nothing to see here." Plus, the world's largest air guitar event, and YT gets a D.I. Leadership Award at the convention. YT is CEO of Visit Oulu in Finland.

What keeps people coming back to Massachusetts' capital? Martha Sheridan, President/CEO of Meet Boston, answers that question and many more from the D.I. Convention in Texas. We discuss Boston’s rebranding process, garnering visitation in the cold winter months, and the city's role as a hub for greater New England tourism. Martha, a 30-year tourism vet, also shares advice for up-and-coming women in the travel industry.

In our debut episode live from the Destinations International Convention in Dallas, Texas we discuss regenerative tourism, indigenous tourism, and Canada’s tourism corridor strategy program with Marsha Walden.

The new “Tourism Exchange USA” enables suppliers - ranging from accommodations to tours and attractions - to manage live availability, pricing, and bookings across multiple distributors in a one-stop exchange. Find out about how the exchange works, initial destination adoption, first party data, and more. Nate Huff is Senior Vice President at Miles Partnership.

For the Fourth of July, we bring you American celebrations in India, Germany and Italy. We cover the logistics of holiday activations internationally, the Sister City program, and the surprising popularity of Black Friday around the globe. Join the party with Sheema Vohra, Managing Director at Sartha Global Marketing in India; Josy Ando, CEO at Authentico Marketing in Italy; and Nicola Aherns, Account Director at Lieb Marketing in Germany.

Our conversation takes us to the intersection of sustainability and tourism. We talk visitation impact, modeling good behavior outdoors, and how destinations can help with bring Leave No Trace ideals to travelers. Andrew Leary is Director of Sustainable Tourism and Partnerships at Leave No Trace, and serves on the U.S. Travel and Tourism Advisory Board.

Also, hear why you should be happy when customers complain and provide feedback. Plus, we discuss removing friction from travel experiences, setting goals beyond recovery, WiFI on planes, and artificial intelligence talking to artificial intelligence. Tim Mapes is Delta Airline’s Senior VP and Chief Marketing & Communications Officer, and is on Brand USA's Board of Directors.

Joe Marinelli is a walking example of industry loyalty. He's been President/CEO of Visit Savannah since 2007, and spent over a decade each at Experience Columbus and Westin Hotels and Resorts. Joe shares insight about his work experience, expounds upon recent lift, and discusses working with Explore Georgia and Brand USA. We also get tips on how to best enjoy Savannah's historic district and numerous city squares while visiting for ESTO, August 19-22.

For our final IPW 2023 podcast, Matt Charlton takes us behind the scenes of travel writing and broadcasting. We discuss how and where he looks for stories, the resurgence of American cuisine for travelers, and a possible future of writers collaborating with influencers. Matt's work appears in The Times, Rolling Stone, NME, the BBC, and many more media outlets. See you next year at IPW 2024 in Los Angeles!

We catch up with Rick DeLappe, Interagency Program Manager for the National Park Service, as he celebrates both 25 years of Recreation.gov and his own retirement. We learn about the agency's dedication to continuous improvement through forward-looking technological developments, the breakdown of international visitors to Recreation.gov, and the pros and cons of using Google translate.